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Note: This is a seattlepi.com reader blog. It is not written or edited by the P-I. The authors are solely responsible for content. E-mail us at newmedia@seattlepi.com if you consider a post inappropriate..

How to do your own PR: Use good news idea

As newspapers across the country continue to close, people still dream about getting their 15 minutes of fame. Having a business featured in a media story – especially a print publication – is a serious goal for many entrepreneurs.

After spending years working with everyone from compulsive hoarders and paper packrats to people diagnosed with Attention Deficit and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Anderson wrote a how-to book to help her clients conquer their clutter. She created a press release about the book, Get Organized: Get Revitalized, 80 Quick and Easy Tips to Get You Started, and sent it to the local media.

The next thing she knew, she was featured in a newspaper story along with a full-color photo.

OK, OK. I happen to know the process was a little more complicated than that, but you can do it, too! These same steps Anderson used can help you land a story on National Public Radio and Oprah to the Wall Street Journal and Outside Magazine, as long as you focus on the news.

Here are the 20 steps Anderson did to find her local media spotlight:
1. Brainstormed news ideas about the business (Twitter-Style Tips Help Hoarders:
New How-To Book on Organization offers 80 Ways to Tackle Twitter Mindset)
2. Made a list of media to contact
3. Research media sites and specific names of reporters
4. Wrote first draft of press release
5. Got feedback from writer and PR consultant (AKA Whitney Keyes)
6. Revised and edited the press release
7. Pitched the press release with the news idea to the media (using email, online forms, etc.)
8. Heard back from Shauna Nuckles, a journalist for the Bellevue Reporter newspaper
9. Called Keyes again for quick consultation on how to best respond
10. Scheduled a phone interview with reporter
11. Prepped for the interview
12. Conducted the phone interview with her
13. Got contacted by the paper’s photographer, Chad Coleman; sent him logos, etc.
14. He needed a current, “on site” photo so asked a partner company if they would be willing to provide a location to stage a photo shoot
15. Met photographer at the store and did a photo session with him
16. Waited patiently to see if the article came out
17. Article finally posted online: Getting organized: Stacey Anderson can show you how to get a handle on your stuff
18. Got tons of calls from family and friends
19. Still waiting to see if the article will run in the print version of the paper
20. Still waiting to see if all of this PR work generates any new clients!!!

TIP: Help save our newspapers before they all go extinct! They have businesses to run and bills to pay, just like you. Consider paying for a subscription or an advertising campaign if it makes good sense for your business. Read their stories. Comment on the articles posted on their websites. Call and thank reporters for well-written articles. Let their editors know you truly enjoyed reading a specific story. If you want them to be around in the future to help your business, you need to support their goals, too.

Want free tips, ideas and inspiration to take your business to the next level? Click here to subscribe to The Biz Bite from Whitney Keyes.

Note: This is a seattlepi.com reader blog. It is not written or edited by the P-I. The authors are solely responsible for content. E-mail us at newmedia@seattlepi.com if you consider a post inappropriate..